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Ancient Writing and the History of the Alphabet

Season 1
Join Professor John McWhorter on a journey to the very beginning of writing as a tool of language and see how the many threads of history and linguistics came together to create the alphabet that forms the foundation of English writing.
202416 episodesTV-PG
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Episodes

  1. S1 E1 - The Nature of Writing
    February 21, 2024
    25min
    TV-PG
    Begin your exploration of ancient writing with a consideration of how written language and spoken language differ and see why writing is an artificial construct that developed relatively late in human history. Look at Maya hieroglyphs as an example of how writing develops. Close with an overview of what you will cover in the course.
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  2. S1 E2 - Cuneiform: The World’s First Writing
    February 21, 2024
    25min
    TV-PG
    Cuneiform is the earliest surviving form of writing and dates to 3500 BCE. Trace the origins of this writing system by examining why it developed, how it evolved from accounting pictograms to a more complex system, and how it helps us better understand ancient history. Also consider how cuneiform influenced the emergence of other writing systems.
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  3. S1 E3 - How Egyptian Hieroglyphs Work
    February 21, 2024
    26min
    TV-PG
    One of the most familiar ancient writing systems to modern audiences is Egyptian hieroglyphics. Get a basic overview of how hieroglyphics function as a written form of language and consider why it never progressed to an alphabet system. Learn why it took so long for later scholars to decipher hieroglyphics, even with the Rosetta Stone as a deciphering key.
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  4. S1 E4 - The Invention of Alphabets
    February 21, 2024
    19min
    TV-PG
    Follow the progression of writing systems in the ancient world with a look at the Phoenician alphabet as it developed from Egyptian hieroglyphics and spread across the Red Sea to the Middle East. Along the way, examine its influence on writing systems in other languages like Aramaic and Greek. Also, consider the advantages of an alphabet-based writing system for the spread of literacy.
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  5. S1 E5 - The Alphabet Goes East
    February 21, 2024
    27min
    TV-PG
    Explore the development of writing systems in South and Southeast Asia—a part of the story of writing that is often overshadowed by developments in East Asia and Europe. Trace the connections between the scripts of South Asia and the writing systems of the Middle East to see how writing systems can influence others.
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  6. S1 E6 - The Advent of A, E, and O
    February 21, 2024
    23min
    TV-PG
    The “ah” sound of a short letter “A” is the most basic building block of language. Examine the origins of the letter “A” as both a symbol and a sound and see why other vowels like “E” and “O” were developed later. Discover what the letter “A” can teach us about how the alphabet relates to language itself.
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  7. S1 E7 - Lost at C
    February 21, 2024
    24min
    TV-PG
    Why does a letter like “C” operate the way it does? Go back to the ancient world of the Etruscans to trace its earliest origins. Get a clearer picture of the ways that the sounds of letters transform over time. Also, consider the nature of spelling systems and how they often stay the same while other elements of the language change over time.
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  8. S1 E8 - The History of H
    February 21, 2024
    32min
    TV-PG
    The letter “H” is a unique letter of the alphabet in how often we treat it as if it doesn’t exist. Examine the ways we use the letter “H,” why the French influence on English affects “H” so much, and why many European languages drop it as a sound altogether while still preserving the letter in the alphabet.
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  9. S1 E9 - The Inception of I and Its Journey to J
    February 21, 2024
    24min
    TV-PG
    Turn back to the great vowel shift of the 15th and 16th centuries to understand the transformation of English pronunciation. Then trace the birth of the letter “J” in the early 19th century as the result of an odd tangle of historical factors, including the national pride of Noah Webster.
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  10. S1 E10 - The Quirks and Zigzags of Q and Z
    February 21, 2024
    27min
    TV-PG
    Consider the “accidental” letters “Q” and “Z.” Look back to the Phoenician alphabet to better understand why English doesn’t really need a “Q,” and consider how English acquired the letter “Z” through Latin by way of Greek. Also, discover why “Z” sits at the very end of the alphabet.
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  11. S1 E11 - The Ramblings of R
    February 21, 2024
    22min
    TV-PG
    Why does the letter “R” make such a wide array of sounds across languages? Trace the origins of “R” as both a letter and a sound. Discover why it is such an odd letter and why it is often one of the last sounds mastered by children as they learn language. Also, look at the unusual graphic transformation of the letter “R” when written in cursive.
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  12. S1 E12 - The Unfolding of U, V, W, and F
    February 21, 2024
    23min
    TV-PG
    Take a convoluted trip through the history of the letters “U,” “V,” and “W” and see how they connect to the letter “F.” From ancient Greek to the medieval period and beyond, these letters illustrate how the creation of an alphabet is a messy, nonlinear process with numerous twists and turns along the way.
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  13. S1 E13 - The Yesteryears of Y
    February 21, 2024
    20min
    TV-PG
    Discover the “why” of “Y” as you examine the sound it once referred to—which is not present in modern English—and witness the journey of a borrowed letter that made its way across the ages to our current alphabet. Also, consider how the English collision with French altered the alphabet, adding and dropping letters.
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  14. S1 E14 - Brisk Sojourns through B, L, N, and S
    February 21, 2024
    17min
    TV-PG
    Get a quick overview of some of the most common letters of the alphabet and see why the history of “B,” “L,” “N,” and “S” is easier to trace than letters you have covered so far. Look back on the alphabets of the Phoenicians and Greeks to see where these letters started and why they look the way they do.
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  15. S1 E15 - Meditations on M, D, X, and T
    February 21, 2024
    18min
    TV-PG
    Here, you will engage with a set of letters that have entangled origins. Begin with the straightforward origins of “M” and how it led to the creation of the letter “D.” Then, take a similar journey as you look at the relationship of “T” and “X.” Close with a consideration of why the letters of the alphabet are in the order that we know today.
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  16. S1 E16 - How Did Punctuation Develop?
    February 21, 2024
    28min
    TV-PG
    Since the spread of writing and literacy created the need for a tool that could help readers better comprehend what they were reading, bring the course to a close with a look at punctuation. Consider why commas, periods, semicolons, question marks, and other symbols developed and how they became an integral part of modern writing systems.
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Subtitles
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Producers
The Great Courses
Cast
John McWhorter
Studio
The Great Courses
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